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DeSoto Parish crash leaves man dead

A 48-year-old man was killed on Interstate 49 in DeSoto Parish when his vehicle left the highway and struck a tree early Sunday.

The accident happened about 3:15 a.m.on I-49 north of state Highway 3276, according to Louisiana state police reports.

Troopers say a 1999 Ford Crown Victoria, driven by 48-year-old Newman Davis of Mansfield, was southbound when it exited a curve to the left and drove off the right side of the road.

The Ford traveled down an embankment, rotated clockwise and struck a tree on the driver's side door.

Troopers said Davis was not properly restrained and was pronounced dead at the scene by the DeSoto Parish coroner's office. Alcohol use is suspected.

Fire kills man in Red River Parish Sunday

A fire early Sunday resulted in the death of a 46-year-old Coushatta man.

At about 3:35 a.m., Red River Parish firefighters were sent to 1623 Savior St., where they found a single-story residence engulfed in flames. A resident who escaped, 40-year-old Vergina Williams Coleman, told firefighters she had gotten out through a window but that her boyfriend had not escaped.

After the fire was extinguished, the body of Rodney Barfield was found near a bedroom of the home. An initial examination revealed no evidence of trauma to the body, a report from the Louisiana state police said. The remains were sent to LSU Health in Shreveport where an autopsy is scheduled for later in the week.

State Fire Marshal's investigators went to the scene to help determine that the fire, which caused extensive damage to the home, originated in the kitchen area. Coleman told investigators she and Barfield had returned home from a late-night outing and that while she went to bed, the victim said he was going to cook something to eat first. Coleman said she awoke to a house full of smoke and was able to escape by pushing out the bedroom window air conditioner.

While officials remain on the scene examining the fire damage and conducting interviews to determine the exact cause of the fire, they suspect unsafe cooking practices to be the cause of the deadly fire.

The residence was equipped with a smoke alarm but Coleman said she did not hear it operating when she awoke.

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Blotter

A 48-year-old man was killed on Interstate 49 in DeSoto Parish when his vehicle left the highway and struck a tree early Sunday.